Germany 4 England 1

27 June 2010 05:15

Germany dumped England out of the World Cup in emphatic fashion in a game full of goals and controversy. There can be little doubt Germany were the better side, but with the score at 2-1 Frank Lampard's shot, that clearly crossed the line, was not given as a goal. With England pushing on for the equaliser after the break, Germany picked them off on the counter attack. Miroslav Klose scored the opener after John Terry and Matthew Upson found themselves out of position, and the route one goal was taken. Lukas Podolski made it two as Germany poured forward, but Upson headed England back into contention. Then came Lampard's 'goal' and after that Germany striker Thomas Muller's brace completed the job. In a stormy few weeks, Franz Beckenbauer's first attempt to stoke Anglo-German relations came when he branded England a long-ball team. Yet a true exponent of the art would surely be pretty good at defending it. England had already been warned. One long punt down field from David James required a single bounce to rocket over the goal-line. So there was no excuse for John Terry being so far up field when Manuel Neuer launched the ball from his six-yard line that he was taken completely out of the play by its flight. Upson was left one-on-one with Klose and had neither agility, nor the strength to prevent the striker advancing on James and poking the ball into the England goal. It was the start of an exceptionally uncomfortable period for Capello's side as Germany rampaged right through the heart of their midfield almost at will. Mesut Ozil was an obvious problem, but Muller - the 20-year-old who helped destroy Manchester United with Bayern Munich this term - was emerging as the real danger man. Outmanoeuvred When he skipped off the right flank onto Klose's short pass, the English defence was again ripped to shreds. Despite his tender years, Muller retained a cool enough head to flick the ball square to Podolski, whose finish, from a tight angle, went straight through James' legs and in off the post. As James had already made two feet-first saves as German eyes lit up at a clear sight of goal, it seemed there was no way back for a team being completely outmanoeuvred. But Upson's reaction header from Steven Gerrard's cross made the prospect of a turn around possible. As they celebrated, little did England know that within 60 seconds their opponents were about to enjoy the ultimate act of revenge for what happened back in 1966. It ludicrous that Sepp Blatter and his FIFA mandarins continue to shrug their shoulders at such injustices as the one Lampard suffered when the entire stadium, through all manner of new technology, knew within minutes the ball had crashed off Neuer's bar and bounced at least two feet over the line. It was not even close, which is what David Beckham was presumably telling the South American officials as they made their way off at half-time. Within seven minutes of the restart England were suffering again as Lampard let fly from fully 35 yards with a free-kick that again shook Neuer's crossbar. At least this time there was no claim for a goal. It sparked a frenzied second half though, by far the most compelling period of play in the entire tournament, Germany defending manically, then trying to break on the counter. Bastian Schweinsteiger had already come close to killing the game when another Lampard free-kick cannoned off the wall. Gareth Barry was neatly robbed, Muller set Schweinsteiger free and began a run that ended with him burying England's World Cup dream. Germany were not finished. With their opponents committed to desperate attack, Ozil raced past Barry with alarming ease and presented a gleeful Muller with a tap-in. What is your verdict on the game? Have your say.